An Angel for Tsar

by Lauren Kross

I was on my way to deal with some thugs harassing my client, still hungover from the night before, when I collided with a devastatingly handsome stranger and spilled coffee all over him. I thought nothing of the chance encounter until our paths crossed again under far worse conditions.

The stranger turned out to be Ilay Ivanovich, the Pakhan of the Russian Bratva.

I’m a lawyer fighting for a client being crushed by a corrupt senator. The deeper I dig, the more I uncover the mafia and the senator are working together. And lIay is at the center of it all.

But the case stops being my biggest problem. He does.

The deeper I get, the more intense his obsession with me grows.

Now I’m learning just how dangerous it is to catch the attention of the Bratva king.

And in the Bratva, what the Pakhan claims is his forever.

Full-length standalone mafia romance. No cliffhanger. HEA guaranteed.

Genres: Mafia Romance, Romance, Dark Romance

545 pages, Kindle Edition

Published March 1, 2026

Reviews

[Darlene I read WAY to many books · Rating 2 out of 5]

I saw this video on reels and I was interested and at the start it was okay then it turned into a shit show.

Iris a lawyer who carry's around a baseball bat to help ppls around survive gangs and all that, finds herself in Ilya path and he's interested in her, but the way he acted was okay then he went a psycho I didn't enjoy. because of the mayor she wanted to expose and he worked with.

this man wanted to shot anyone didn't matter if it was cook if she didn't eat. Choked her at one point and almost tossed her off a balcony because she didn't wanna sleep in the same room as him. Got mad at her when she said she wanted a normal life marry a normal man.
Got mad and said he wish he shot her legs so she wouldn't have run away from him. That's pretty disturbing and a red flag man I do not want.

I like my man's less abusive then this man. and then Iris went from a strong woman to a weak one which was pretty sad.
The only thing I agree on was him wanting revenge against her family. Which she barley found. So idk why she was so ugh about them.

only likeable charas was the friend and the new brothers Iris found out. I can't tell if the next book shall be a 3some or a MF. with the best friend and the brothers.

No ow/om drama, no cheating, slight secondary character, drama, sexy times, no virgins

Recommend-no
Cover-⭐️⭐️⭐️
Heat level-🌶🌶🌶



Slowinsta
Violence
Gore
Murder
Mass casualty events
Torture
Dun-con
Non-con
Death threats
Panic attacks
emotional distress
Emotional manipulation
Physical Assault
Trauma
No condom
Hea

[Emily · Rating 1 out of 5]

I’m so disappointed. What lawyer acts like this? What made men are so… like this? The snippet I found on insta wasn’t even the same. The writing is off, punctuation and grammar nonexistent. This could have been hot. Too many plot holes, though.

[Hilary Petyko · Rating 1 out of 5]

Wanted to like it, but wow! Such a hot mess!

To begin with, there is no way this was edited. Incorrect words, spelling, punctuation, etc. It was very difficult to read. I thought perhaps it was translated from a different language, but nope. The story was also plagued with so many plot holes, inconsistent character descriptions, and timing that did NOT make sense.

The worst part though, was when the scenes were meant to be spicy / domineering, but were written so poorly that the scenes were just blatant SA. Not much gets to me, but some of the scenes were infuriating.

I didn’t select this story looking for high literature, but this was just insulting.

[Bri · Rating 1 out of 5]

I genuinely do not mean this in a rude way, but I'm curious to know if this authors first language is English because this book read like a translated version. Like most other reviewers I saw an ad for this book and it made me curious enough to try. I think the story was there but for me it wasn't executed very well. I honestly didn't understand half of the plot and it felt like everything was a filler to get to some TikTok sensational scenes. The only ones that seemed to be focused on were those same ones that I saw in the ads and promos. Everything else wasn't explained well enough for me to even understand what these characters were doing. And the heroine came off as more of a unserious caricature of an attorney than an actual, take-no-prisoners one. We're supposed to believe she's out there kicking legal ass when really she's waving piles of papers around saying she's suing people while us, the readers, get no context on what led to all of this. And the hero...just no.

[nala · Rating 1 out of 5]

Seen an ad for this book on Facebook and decided to give it a shot.

It was okay, the spice was good. But that’s about it.

If anyone has read -Roses and Champagne- on Lezhin, it’s a BL Manhwa. And this book is exactly like that, I mean to the point it straight up had an exact scenario that was in the Manhwa. It’s honestly considered plagiarism. There were exact scenarios in the book that was in the Manhwa.

- For instance in the Manhwa the ML asks the MC for help and the MC mocks and the ML grabs his fountain pen out of anger and stabs the pen inches from his head, in this books she ask for help and when he locks her and walks away, she grabs her pen and throws it inches from his head and it gets stuck in the door.

- Another copied scenario, in the Manhwa the MC ask the ML to help him get a building from someone who died, and he lives in his house for a few weeks gathering info. When they find a witness they go to visit him only for him to be murdered by an assassin the next day. And the assassin targets them when they find the body. This exact thing happens in the books as well.

The only different was this was a female and male MC, not MM. and he was a bit more unhinged than Caesar in Rose and Champagne.

This book is straight plagiarized from the BL Manhwa Roses and Champagne.

[Lenanena · Rating 1 out of 5]

no cause wtf even was that

[Mallory Logue · Rating 1 out of 5]

what the hell did i just read

[GentleRabbit · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was one of the worst books I have ever read.

The plot was either extremely weak or practically nonexistent. Nothing meaningful happens, and there’s no real direction or purpose to the story. I kept waiting for it to improve, but it never did.

There was no tension, no emotional pull, and nothing that made me care about the characters or the outcome. Even elements that could have added interest were completely absent.

Overall, it was an empty and disappointing read, offering nothing memorable or engaging.

[Mochi the Cat · Rating 1 out of 5]

Feels like my twelve-year-old self writing my very first Wattpad fanfic during recess and hit publish immediately.

[Shannon M · Rating 1 out of 5]

What in the actual hell was that ?! I don’t know how this got past, Arc readers, beta readers, editors. Cause HUH?!?!

[Jillian Bland · Rating 2 out of 5]

Okay, there is no way this book was edited. This felt like such a rough draft copy that immediately went to publishing. It reads almost like it was translated from a different language and I don’t know if it was or not and I don’t care enough to look it up. It’s so very jumpy and I feel like a lot of the chapters don’t line up and it just has so many holes. I feel like done right this book had sooooo much potential, with that being said I did still like it? I don’t know something about Ilay just being so obsessed and the yearning and pining and BEGGING got me good. I genuinely think that’s the only reason I rate it a 2. Literally so many holes, I feel like we bring in Tessa her best friend whenever it benefits the story but we would talk about her in one chapter and then forget her in the next chapter. She meets her family which she says she kind of already knew that she would find him but also it didn’t seem like she was actively looking for him. I feel like they jumped to her calling him Dad so quickly but what do I know it could be a trauma thing. I feel like even the romance is all over the place and one chapter she’s in love with him in the next she’s not and I feel like they were saying that she said I love you when she hadn’t said I love you I truly just feel like this book was not edited in the slightest and I feel like if someone actually read it through it before publishing it it would have made a world of difference. I also don’t understand how the book is 500+ pages long and it has as many holes as it does. With all that being said though I do really want to read the short novella attached to this book so obviously I liked something. It did also have me laughing out loud a few times.

[Hannah Avendaño · Rating 3 out of 5]

Absolutely devoured this. The plot is great, there’s awesome humor at the start that I wish continued throughout but it drops off when Iris becomes an indecisive little bitch. The dude is morally pitch black- threatens to kill her if she leaves him, shoots himself to get her to turn around and come back, and legit kills and threatens to kill anyone he wants. Many times this is the world burning protectiveness we love in a strong MMC, but most of the book I was asking myself where the love story was cuz it felt more like a mafia documentary. Too real in the psycho murderer bits. But I can appreciate his level of unhinged because he was fully devoted to her- she was the moron who didn’t realize the power she had for too long. She could have had him eating out of the palm of her hand the whole time, and the first impression we get of her indicates that’s the kinda personality she has. Except she acted like she was scared but then not scared but then not committing- just playing this cat and mouse game and it annoyed me. Also, the dialogue was very weird a lot of the time. We’re told too often instead of shown, which I can look past. But I get very hung up on unnatural conversations and this had so many. Aside from that, I think this author had a great story and will write absolute bangers when she gets the dialogue and inconsistencies in the details ironed out.

[Ester · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dedication Dedicated to the girls who see a red flag and think "I want him to split me open like a fucking coconut." I see you. I am you. We're all going to hell together.
LIKE THIS IS HOW YOU START THE BOOK...

This book was amazing!!
I did truly enjoy the post and even if Ilay was a bit (full psycho) unhinged I love it !!!!

Meet Ilay and Ivy.. 2 separate wordls colliding into a very steamy and twisted book.

Ilay's as the bratva head and Ivy as a lawyer with a mystery past (That not even her knows about).

This book characters are funny, twisted, obsessive and pretty much psychotic, you will love and hate then , and then want some more..

Get ready for the wild ride, found family (literally) kidnapping, lying, stalking, loving and caring.. the normal love we specifically want only in books 📚!

[Jesse · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book was all over the place. Reading it felt like a fever dream. She’s a lawyer but yet she acts like a 16yr old with anger issues.
I downloaded this book because of what I saw on the instagram ad. The part in the ad didn’t happen in the book. I could not get into the story no matter how hard i tried. The book is full of contradictions. She describes him as pale with light blonde hair and blue eyes. Then later she mentions his tan skin and dark eyes. He tells her to run and if he catches her he’s not letting her leave. Then just lets her go and doesn’t go after her at all. Is he unhinged? Yes. But I expect that in dark romance. This book had potential with the story line but this is…. I don’t even have words.
I DNF about half way through. I just can’t force myself to read the rest.

[Rachael Johnson · Rating 3 out of 5]

The storyline itself was fine however I think this book was maybe originally written in another language, Russian maybe as that’s where the book is based. The text is like it’s been copy and pasted from a translation website, words are wrong, sentences make no sense, tenses keep changing, the storyline is very jumpy and characters seem to be able to move without moving, ie one second they’re against a window, no explanation of movement the next they’re on the bed. It’s very jumpy and isn’t great either. I also truly believe that as much a Ilay was a man of the under world he basically gave Iris Stockholm syndrome and not in a good way. Also Tsar? He gets called it a couple of times and there’s no explanation as to why he’s called that or what it means.

[Leonie Myint · Rating 3 out of 5]

The plot was gripping, and the characters were fascinating and truly unique. The subtleties of the main characters were chaotic and unhinged, yet somehow still beautiful. The FMC and MMC are absolutely deadly together—volatile, powerful, and magnetic in every scene they share.

My only critique is that the editing could have been stronger. At times, the story felt a bit rushed, and there were moments where the emotional connection didn’t feel as fully developed as it could have been.

Overall, though, it was a beautiful book, and I thoroughly enjoyed the experience.

Thank you for this wonderful ARC opportunity!

[Debs · Rating 5 out of 5]

My goodness!!!

What a rollercoaster of a read! Heartbreaking, violent, hot, ruthless, obsessive.

This is a love story surrounded by everything you can imagine sent to stop it. Iris is sassy and sharp and at first she has him right where she wants him. Then the tables turn and you see how deranged and obsessive he actually is. He wants her even if she hates him. He is severely psychologically damaged from childhood trauma and thinks he can just bulldose over everything to get what he wants. She is trying to show him a more humanistic way of living and asking him to allow her to choose her fate. A fab, hot binge-worthy read.

[Cheryl · Rating 3 out of 5]

Iris is lucky that she did not see Ilay's mean side when she first encountered him. If anything, Ilay was so stuck by Iris that he thought, she was an angel. Ilay shows why he is a Brava King. He has that touch her and d!e vibes.

The chemistry between Ilay and Iris is a slow burn one. As the story progressed, the chemistry between these two did heat up. To this factor, the story itself did start out kind of slow for me. It took quite a while for me to get into the story.

The story was stronger with the latter half of the story. Yet this is still a good story. I would try again another book by this author.

[Mihaela · Rating 3 out of 5]

Thank you to Lauren for this amazing ARC opportunity!

The idea was absolutely brilliant and the plot was a good one! The characters were intriguing and unique. The dynamics of the main characters was chaotic and unhinged but beautiful! Ilay and Iris are so toxic together but also so explosive and intoxicating! The only caveat I have is that the editing was a bit poor. The story felt a rushed in some areas and had a lack of emotional connection within some areas. Overall though, it was a beautiful book!

[Bridgette’s Bookshelf · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book as an Arc in return for A HONEST AND TRUE REVIEW!!!!!
I already knew that I was going fall for Ilya there was no doubt about it. No one can mess with Iris and get away with it. That man was head over heels for her. I also love the badass energy Iris has, she isn’t afraid by much and keeps her head held high. I also loved Tessa from her first sentence. She is a real one through and through.
If you’re look a found family and second chance family, obsessed MMC, Badass FMC’s then this book is for you

[Fleur · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was kind of losing my interest in beginning because of the same back and forth between Ilay and Irish. It was getting boring. The typical FL being righteous, which got me annoyed at one point, also what type of lawyer acts like this. 😪
The constant reluctance was boring like the same thing happening over and over again. If her father does it, then it's okay, but if ML does it, then it's wrong. She is an immature drama queen despite being a lawyer.

Having mixed feelings over the book. Rather than the dark Mafia romance, it was very much chaotic.

[Alice⭐️ · Rating 1 out of 5]

That’s so bad…. I mean
I kinda like him in the beginning because she got some fire and he enjoyed it, so yk I thought it would be funny and messy in a good way.
Then I don’t know what happened…
She kept crying for no reason. She accepted her family so easily but kept running away from that man. Baby they’re all gangsters, wake the fuck up. You don’t want that man, ok fine, you shouldn’t want your brothers/dad either 🤗
It was all incoherent I swear, at one point it didn’t have any sense 😫😫
Don’t waste your time
0 stars

[Brooklyn sky hansler · Rating 5 out of 5]

Best Book Boyfriend

Where to start Ilay has very quickly turned into my favorite book boyfriend this is one of those, one of my favorite quotes fits this book to a tee

You don’t want a hero. A hero would sacrifice you for the world.
You want the villain — the one who would burn the world down for you

That villain is Ilay and all the red flags are screaming to run but makes me want to dive that much deeper into him.

[Mihaela Ghiurluc · Rating 2 out of 5]

Clearly author does not know anything about Europe or Eastern European countries… cause what was that ? Until halfway through the book you see they’re not actually speaking in English the whole time, but only certain phrases are in italic? Like make it make sense
Also any basic reach will tell you: giving someone an EVEN number of flowers is extremely bad luck in Russia… that’s where you lost me!

[natalya mccarty · Rating 5 out of 5]

loved it

Loved the characters in this book. I want mmc to be obsessed with me like he was with her 😁 the lengths he went through to get her back just wow. Loved the fmc she was diff a baddie and strong character and loved the friendship between her and Tessa. Can’t wait to see what Lauren has in store for us in the next book!

[charis harris · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow!

I started this book and I'm twenty pages in thinking 'it's not very dark' but I was loving the interactions between Iris and Ilay they were hilarious, laugh and loud. Then suddenly you realise that Ilay is a total nutjob and it all gets very dark, very quickly!!
I found some of the writing a bit naive which is why I gave it four stars but I loved it 😃

[Narayani Jha · Rating 2 out of 5]

i hate read this book, I hoped i would get better it didn't . The book read like it was badly translated from a different language. The characters had no arc no growth . The MMC was bad he practically threaten the FMC into the "relationship". it's death or be his wife . fmc was strong in the starting , but By the end she had no choice. this book was bad . if anyone is reading this , save your time there are other better books . although this book had potential it just need more time and care . it was just a miss for me .

[FireSerene Reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice!

This one is intense and a little chaotic in a good way. The hero is dark, obsessive, and not easy to love. The heroine is pulled into a world she never wanted but can’t escape. It’s not a soft romance, it’s messy, possessive, and full of tension, but if you like dark mafia stories, this hits that vibe.

[Helena · Rating 2 out of 5]

A very quotable book, but the plot had huge gaps, the story jumped from one thing to another, some unnecessary POV's from other characters ...

The characters completely transformed after a few pages, they were like other people.

In my opinion, the book needed a round of editing first and a focus on the actual story.

[Harley · Rating 5 out of 5]

loved it

I love my mafia and I love all things dark so this def checked off boxes and had me in that chokehold!! The entire story and growth just had me like I need more asap please and thank you